April 16, 2013
A 15-team field of NCAA head coaches and celebrity alumni are set to compete in the seventh annual Chick-fil-A Bowl Challenge charity golf tournament. Top national coaches such as Frank Beamer, Urban Meyer, Nick Saban, Steve Spurrier and many others will hit the links, all vying for their share of the $520,000 scholarship purse for their respective universities.
The nation’s premier head coach and celebrity golf event will be held April 28-30 at the Reynolds Plantation resort on Lake Oconee outside Atlanta. In the past six years, the Chick-fil-A Bowl Challenge has provided $3.3 million in scholarship and charitable contributions.
Over the three-day event, several tournament rounds will be played in addition to the featured, televised round of coaches and celebrities. The complete field of head coaches, professional golfers, former athletes and celebrities includes three NFL Hall of Famers, six Heisman Trophy winners, 10 national Coaches of the Year and 16 Pro Bowlers.
The field of competitors for the featured round is scheduled to include four former winning teams including back-to-back defending champions Paul Johnson and Jon Barry of Georgia Tech (2011, 2012), Jimbo Fisher and Terrell Buckley of Florida State (2010), two-time winners Steve Spurrier and Sterling Sharpe from South Carolina (2008, 2009), and Frank Beamer and Dell Curry from Virginia Tech (2007).
New additions to this year’s tournament include Heisman Trophy winner Mark Ingram (Alabama), Bo Jackson (Auburn) and new ACC member Syracuse. Reigning National Champion Alabama and Virginia Tech, who will square off in this year’s Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game, are also set to participate.
The 15 university teams will be vying for the $125,000 first-place prize with all teams receiving a portion of the $520,000 scholarship purse.
The field of competitors for the featured event is scheduled to include:
Alabama: Nick Saban/Mark Ingram
Auburn: Gus Malzahn/Bo Jackson
Clemson: Dabo Swinney/Steve Fuller
Florida State: Jimbo Fisher/Terrell Buckley 2010 Winners
Georgia Tech: Paul Johnson/Jon Barry 2011, 2012 Winners
Miami: Al Golden/Gino Torretta
Mississippi: Hugh Freeze/Sean Tuohy
Mississippi State: Dan Mullen/Fred McCrary
North Carolina: Larry Fedora/Roy Williams
NC State: Dave Doeren/Tom Gugliotta
Ohio State: Urban Meyer/Jeff Logan
South Carolina: Steve Spurrier/Sterling Sharpe 2008, 2009 Winners
Syracuse: Scott Shafer/Jim Boeheim
Virginia Tech: Frank Beamer/Dell Curry 2007 Winners
Wake Forest: Jim Grobe/Riley Skinner
The Chick-fil-A Bowl Challenge main event features pairings that include a university head coach and a celebrity or former athlete from the same school competing in a scramble format against other university teams from around the country.
In addition to the $520,000 scholarship purse, an additional $135,000 charitable donation will be made to Chick-fil-A’s WinShape Homes. The Chick-fil-A Bowl Challenge is a significant contributor to the Chick-fil-A Bowl’s overall charitable and scholarship donations. The Chick-fil-A Bowl leads all bowls in the country in charitable giving, including gifts of more than $15.7 million since 2002.
The tournament is being taped by ESPN for broadcast in the fall. The date of the broadcast will be announced this summer.
